Near Paris, 5 ideas for walks for a month of May in the great outdoors

In Meudon, an open-air contemporary art museum

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Hangar Y park, open-air contemporary art museum Luc Boegly

A year ago, a former airship hangar was transformed into a cultural place on the edge of the Meudon forest. With its catering areas, its exhibitions combining science and art and its rich programming of workshops and shows, Hangar Y has established itself, in just a few months, as an essential cultural site in Greater Paris, already visited by 160,000 visitors.

To blow out its first candle, the place has enriched the artistic journey it offers in its park. The opportunity for walkers to admire a monumental wrought iron teapot signed Joana Vasconcelos. The Portuguese artist also designed a pair of XXL pumps made of saucepans, a metaphor for today’s woman, stuck between public and domestic life.

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Not to be missed either, the hybrid sculpture, half-human, half-plant, designed by the Cameroonian artist Barthélémy Toguo in homage to the victims of slavery or the astonishing house of the Indian visual artist Subodh Gepta, made up of hundreds of kitchen utensils (pans, colanders, etc.). A great idea for a walk between nature and culture, to do in particular on Wednesdays, the day when visiting the park is free.

Hangar Y, 9 avenue de Trivaux, 92190 Meudon

In the Vexin, a walk between nature and History

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The village of La Roche-Guyon, seen from the ridge Martial Colomb

It is the only village in Île-de-France to have obtained the label “The most beautiful villages in France”. In the Vexin regional natural park, La Roche-Guyon leans against the cliff which overlooks a meander of the Seine. The village can be visited in particular for its castle, the old medieval keep of which can be reached in a fifteen-minute walk, via a path (which goes up and up!)

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Built in the Middle Ages, the fortress has been transformed over the centuries and now reveals to visitors several remarkable spaces: an English garden, a vegetable and fruit garden, 18th century stables installed in boves (cavities dug into the rock ) or even elegant ceremonial salons frequented in particular by Lamartine and Hugo.

After visiting the estate, “charrières” (sloping streets that start from the lower town) allow you to reach the crest of the plateau. Up there, the trails offer a splendid panorama of the valley and the Seine.

Not to be missed in the surrounding area is the troglodyte church of the Annunciation and its chalk facade: the building was entirely dug into the rock. Or the marvelous arboretum of La Roche-Guyon, whose remarkable trees represent the outlines of the Ile-de-France departments.

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A gourmet stopover in Saint-Ouen

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Communale, new gourmet market in the Docks district in Saint-Ouen Studio Fred H

Whether it’s rain or shine, Philippe Berry’s rainbow sculpture brightens up the lawn of the Grand Parc des Docks. A tribute to Nelson Mandela’s Rainbow Nation, the multicolored work is a good starting point for a walk in the Saint-Ouen Docks eco-district. This former industrial site has benefited from a vast urban transformation operation over the last ten years and today brings together housing, schools and shops.

Opened this winter, the Communale gourmet hall has given a second life to a former Alstom building. From Tuesday to Sunday, you can come there at any time to eat, have a drink or do your shopping (the place offers a local producers’ market every day). The site also offers a rich multidisciplinary program (yoga classes, philosophical snacks, upcycling workshops, introduction to wine tasting, etc.)

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Further south of Saint-Ouen, going down towards the flea market, the third place Commune Image, dedicated to the audiovisual professions, will also delight gourmet strollers with Muse, its table whose menu brings together French cuisine and products. Afro-Caribbean.

Muse, 8, rue Godillot, Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine
Municipal, 10 bis rue de l’Hippodrome, Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine

A day of cycling in the Compiègne forest

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Pierrefonds castle, at the gates of the Compiègne forest Jacek Sopotnicky

80 kilometers north of the capital, accessible by transport, the Compiègne national forest – 14,400 hectares of nature – is a fantastic playground for cyclists and hikers. With nearly 900 kilometers of paths, it also has a formidable network of green, asphalted paths with very low gradients. The setting is ideal for a day in the woods, especially as the area has so many remarkable sites.

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Let us first mention the impressive Pierrefonds castle, perched on its rocky promontory. Built at the end of the 14th century, this monumental fortress was reinvented in the 19th century by the architect Viollet-le-Duc. Also unmissable is the spectacular Beaux-Monts avenue, which cuts the forest in two in front of the Château de Compiègne. History tells that this breakthrough, 60 meters wide and 5 kilometers long, was created on the orders of Napoleon I. He thus wanted to reproduce the perspective of Schönbrunn, the summer palace of the Austro-Hungarian dynasty, from which his wife Marie-Louise of Austria came.

A one and a half kilometer educational trail has been set up by the National Forestry Office to cover the site. Further south, the peaceful village of Saint-Jean-aux-Bois, with its stone bridge and flowered gardens, is also worth the detour.

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Air and trees between Le Bourget and Courneuve

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The Air and Space Museum, a playground for young and old Stéphane Mouchmouch / Hans Lucas via AFP

Climb aboard the Concorde, admire the first aircraft, go behind the scenes of a Boeing 747, experience a rescue at sea aboard the Super Frelon… Just a stone’s throw from Paris, the Air and Space Museum, installed on part of Le Bourget airport, offers an amazing program for those curious or passionate about aviation.

For architecture lovers, it is also worth the detour, notably thanks to its renovated Grande Galerie (which occupies the historic Le Bourget airport), an Art Deco jewel with remarkable columns and ironwork.

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After visiting the museum, head for the Georges Valbon Departmental Park, which can be reached in a 20-minute walk. Little known to Parisians, it is nevertheless the third green space in the Île-de-France region, with its 400 hectares where large lawns, play areas and wooded areas coexist. A green lung accessible by transport, for a day away from the city.

Paris-Le Bourget Airport, 93352 Le Bourget